Iran: IRAN ATTEMPTS TO LIMIT EXPOSURE OF HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES

On Tuesday, several new stories emerged regarding Iranian arrests of political prisoners and the pressure being faced by persons already being held in Iranian jails. Human rights sources in Iran noted that a government official named Alireza Rahmani had been arrested on November 29 solely for the crime of using social media to express support for political prisoner and renowned human rights lawyer Narges Mohammadi.

In May, Mohammadi was sentenced to 16 years in prison for her peaceful activism, of which she will serve a minimum of 10 years, unless the Iranian judiciary takes highly unusual action to commute her sentence. Although such action seems unlikely, there has been virtually unprecedented advocacy among Iranian politicians for a review of her case. A number of members of the Iranian parliament, for instance, sent a letter to the head of the judiciary, urging “Islamic mercy.” But there has been pushback against these efforts, both from conservative MPs and from the judiciary itself.

Furthermore, hardline news outlets have sought to expose Mohammadi’s defenders, as in the case of Alireza Rahmani. His Telegram post asking friends to sign a petition on her behalf was published online, presumably contributing to his subsequent arrest. Rahmani, the director of public relations for the Qazvin governor’s office, was quickly released on bail, but still faces possible national security charges for “supporting a provocateur.